MOSCOW, September 10 (RIA Novosti) - The reliability of Bulava (SS-NX-32) Submarine-Launched Ballistic Missiles (SLBM) must be tested by multiple launching, Adm. Vladimir Komoyedov, chairman of the defense committee of the State Duma, Russia’s lower house of parliament, said Wednesday.
“The long-suffering Bulava has flown, but a multiple launching from a submarine is needed to confirm its reliability and quality,” Komoyedov said.
Earlier on Wednesday, Bulava was successfully test-fired from a Borey-class Vladimir Monomakh nuclear-powered submarine. The missile was launched from a location near the White Sea in Russia's northwest and hit a target at the Kura test range in Russia’s Far Eastern Kamchatka Territory.
Bulava is an advanced Russian three-stage solid fuel missile, deployed on submarines. Russia’s Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu ordered five additional launches of Bulava following the failure of the missile’s launch during the testing of the Aleksandr Nevsky nuclear submarine in September 2013.
The Russian Ministry of Defense plans to equip the Russian Navy with 10 Borey-class nuclear submarines by 2020. Two of them, Yuri Dolgoruky and Aleksandr Nevsky are already in service. The Borey class is set to replace the Typhoon- and Delta-3 and Delta-class boats for the Russian Navy's strategic nuclear deterrent fleet.
